In high school, I absolutely did not give a shit about Instagram. What I did was post pictures and just upload them. Remember when we used to do that? We didn't have VSCO, Lightroom, Photoshop... we just simply put our pictures online for the whole world to see. Raw. Unedited. The "real" us. #NoFilter, no editing involved. Just us.
And life went on.
So why does it matter all of a sudden that Becky doesn't get 200 likes on a picture and she has to delete it? Is she deleting the memory too? Or is she deleting the picture because it doesn't go with her "Instagram aesthetic?" We don't live in a world dominated by social media — we live in social media.
Why?
We care about what other people think of us. Yes, I do get a little upset when someone doesn't like me or calls me unpopular. Yeah, yeah, yeah we're all human.
But putting everything into a photo sharing app and caring so much on what we look like on social media and then basing that on our self-esteem and how we think we're viewed to the world is too much. Sit back and think. How much time do you spend scrolling through Instagram? You probably scrolled through Facebook on your phone waiting for your class to start when you found this article.
How much time do you spend on Instagram a day? Two hours a day? Four? Six? In actuality, Instagram said the average person spends about 15 minutes per day. We open the app and mindlessly scroll without even looking at the picture. We 'double tap' and don't even look at the picture.
Instagram aesthetics are actually pointless.
Why should I care about your pink aesthetic or that all your pictures are "bright" and "airy"? What does that do to my life, my personal values? Am I affected by the fact that you took time out of your day to perfect your photos? And how would that affect you? Being Instagram worthy and having perfect model photos...are you a professional model? If you are, good for you. But most likely if you're a college student, literally how do you have the time? What does that do to you and your personal values now that you have a "color scheme?"
All I'm saying is that having an 'Instagram aesthetic' is pointless in my opinion. You try and you try to get it to be a right color scheme, the right photo theme, or even have the right "shape." Why don't you just post your pictures as if they were memories...because news flash, they're memories of what you did this weekend or a #tbt to your high school days. No need to make it this perfected model aesthetic that two seconds later the person looking at it will forget about.
I'm not saying that you shouldn't perfect your photos and be a Photoshop genius. Don't post blurry pictures of yourself at the bar or any pictures where I can't see your face. Photoshop is actually a useful skill to have if you want to go in communication, public relations, journalism, graphic design, or any multimedia design. And Instagram is a good photo sharing app where you can share your best memories with your family and friends. But if it's just to be "Instagram worthy and "artsy," then make this a warning that I will be the first one — and not the only one — to unfollow you.
And if you are one of those people who do care about this kind of stuff, and basing your self-esteem on amount of likes you get and/or how you look on Instagram, then quit it. Set restrictions, delete the app, unfollow other people who focus on that kind of stuff.
